Buildings Insurance - Rip Off?

[Scarlett]

How much should my buildings insurance be? I have 2 lower floors and my neighbour has the top 2 floors of an 1870 terrace. The property’s rooms are big and it has a massive chimney. We share the cost of buildings insurance which is now £82 pcm between us. Is this a lot?

[woofgang]

You could do confused.com or compare the market etc and check. I di it most years when my insurance comes due

[tonyav]

Sounds a lot to me, have you had any quotes from elsewhere or tried any of the comparison sites ?

[Buenchico]

From the (Government-funded) Money Advice Service, published last year:
"Buildings insurance covers the property itself as well as the permanent fixtures and fittings, such as the kitchen and bathrooms and on average costs £111.83 a year, according to the AA"

Source:
https://www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk/blog/how-much-is-the-average-cost-of-home-and-contents-insurance

[TonyV]

I always check quotes online every year, daftest was last year when company we use gave me a cheaper online quote somehow they managed to meet the online quote, about £100 cheaper.

[237SJ]

I think that's exensive. Have a look at Gocompare.

[bednobs]

it will of course depend on where you live and the various risk assessments

[TonyV]

It's a bit like builders merchants I go with neihbours if they need anything, I just say trade cash, at least it saves them the VAT.

[-SharonA-]

In my last house, the whole house, two floors cost me £120 for the year.

[KARL]

Every year for well over a decade (if I am not mistaken) I have renewed the same two policies for the same two properties with the same insurance outfit. Every year the process starts with them sending me a renewal notice for each policy stating a noticeable increase in premium. Every year I phone them and protest/query the premium. Every year I end up with a very modest increase - that is why I am still with them. It seems to me that the "system" (for which read "the computer/software") is rigged to try it on and when you challenge them the premium is adjusted down. Being rather cynical toward insurance companies, I would not be surprised if this was standard practice.

Something else that is standard practice and foreigners I know find really strange, is to base the premium mostly on the number of bedrooms. This way you could easily pay more for insuring a 70m² dwelling with four (mostly very small) bedrooms than a 110m² one with two or three (good ones). Elsewhere it is the norm to base the premium on the total floor area (trust the foreigners to be illogical).